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If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know that I’ve been dealing with a lot of difficult things so far this year.

But there was one (very) bright spot in the middle of it all. My dad and my brother were able to come to the U.S. for my Lolo’s funeral, and stayed for three weeks.

My parents are missionaries to the Philippines, and I last said goodbye to my dad and brother a month before Little Man was born. So the opportunity for them to come back to the States meant that they got to meet my son for the first time.Little Man waiting at the airport to meet his grandpa and uncle for the first time.

It was such a blessing to have this time together as a family. Now that my sister and I live full-time in the States, it doesn’t happen very often.

Meeting Uncle Pierce for the first time.

I was nervous about how Little Man would respond to his uncle and grandpa at first, since in the past he’s needed time to warm up to new people.

Meeting my dad for the first time

I was surprised when he immediately let them hold him and started playing with them right away.

Thanks to the wonders of technology, Little Man has video chatted with them on Skype now and again, so maybe that little bit of familiarity helped.

Having grown up as a missionary kid, I lived one side of the separation as a child. My parents first went to the Philippines when I was 4 months old. It wasn’t until I became a parent that I realized how difficult this must have been on my Dad’s parents (my mom’s parents were missionaries in the Philippines as well, but on a different island than we were on.) I was their first grandchild, and they only got a few short months with me. The next time they saw me, I was 2.

My whole life has been filled with difficult goodbyes. To family and friends in two countries. But now I say goodbye for me and for Little Man as well, which makes it even more poignant.

When God calls a person to missions, he calls their whole family. We all sacrifice in ways we wouldn’t otherwise choose. But I know that my parents’ doing God’s will is beneficial for our whole family. I hope Little Man learns that someday.

So while there are tears in missing loved ones, there is joy in the knowledge that God is good and that he works for the good of those who love Him. And that’s the legacy I hope to pass on like my parents passed it on to me.

Question: What kind of God would put people through such agony? What kind of God would give you families and then ask you to leave them? What kind of God would give you friends and then ask you to say “Goodbye”?

Answer: A God who knows that deepest love is built not on passion and romance but on a common mission and sacrifice.

Answer: A God who knows we are only pilgrims and that eternity is so close that any “Goodbye” is, in reality, a “see you tomorrow”.